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Church of Wonders – Fringe Festival Perth

Mama Shak and a cast of talented performers showcased their sideshow/burlesque “Chest of Wonders” at Perth’s Fringe Festival on Wednesday night. In this 18+ cabaret style 70 min show, you are transported back to the days of sideshow and carnival. Where beautiful women cavort with the weird and grotesque.

Let me introduce you to the characters

Elle Diablo – Sword swallowing & fire eating.

Taffy – Burlesque dancer exploring body dysmorphia.

Tiki Amazon- Fan dancing fire cracker.

Ginger Snapz – Busty redheaded burlesque dancer.

Loli Box – trained dancer, sensual seductress.

Eevie La Volpe – Love Child

Morgaine – vertical aerials.

With the cast of Chest of Wonders

I got to ask the cast a few questions, this is what they said ;

Why the comparison or reference to religion in your show?

Church of Wonders is the parody and interpretation of Christian televangelism. The choice of theme was relatively easy given the amount of material available to work with. Anyone who has been up early enough on a Sunday (for whatever reason) to hear TV preachers espousing fire and brimstone can appreciate that there’s comedy gold there. We’ve also managed to incorporate the concept of a ‘hell house’ and a sprinkling of bible basher too. We’ve taken the delivery method of these 3 elements and made it about things that we like; great circus, amazing burlesque and strange sideshow.

The show centers around the teachings of Preacher MamaShak (think James Brown in The Blues Brothers). Assisted on stage by The Cheese Girls, Jesus and a nun. We worship one god at Church of Wonders, the female form. That said 70% of the group are scientists and atheists and this show does reflect that. We feel the show can be fairly ridiculous, as most organised religions are.

Who is the mastermind behind the show?

Chest of Wonders was founded by Tiki Amazon and Elle Diablo and they continue to be the artistic directors. After a late night stint in the emergency ward, watching non stop televangelism, Elle and Tiki conceptualized The Church of Wonders. The scripting is handled however by the amazing MamaShak and each artist created and submits their own pieces.

Who is the bossiest/most difficult character to work with in your show ?

Elle Diablo

How many nights will you perform here in Perth as part of the Fringe Festival?

Just the four nights from 18-21st Feb.

What do you do to relax before your performance?

Tiki Amazon organises, Elle Diablo prays. To the bar.

What do you love about Perth?

Perth Fringe World holds a special place for Chest of Wonders. The company was essentially born at the Big Top in 2014 and touring really bought the group together as one cohesive unit. The cast loves the beaches and the weather which is much more consistent than Melbourne. Also Perth Fringe provides a time for the group to actually hang out socially as we’re all pretty busy at home. Elle grew up in Perth and her parents very kindly let the whole circus stay with them during Fringe. Elle loves that Fringe World has introduced the arts to a wider audience in WA.

Any hints on your new season show for next year?

Next year we can’t tell you what we’re going to do but we’ll definitely be back.

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I can tell you we all had a great giggle at the naughtiness of this show, go grab your tickets now right here Church Of Wonders

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About author

Bernadette Bosanac , Perth Lifestyle Blogger has worked in the fashion and modelling industry for over 20 years, accumulating experiences in retail, marketing, make-up artistry, photography, social media and events. Bernadette has regularly blogged for shopping precincts and online magazines and more recently was a freelance writer for The West Australian Newspaper. She is a devoted Mother and lover of life. She is a regular on all major social platforms. Join and follow her journey.